Linne Calodo – Paso Robles – Barrel Tasting

On this adventure of Vineyard Vlog, Seth Johnson & Andrew Lazorchak, we’ll take you through a myriad of delicious creations by Matt Trevisan, owner/winemaker at Linne Calodo, a boutique winery that creates some of Paso Robles tastiest gems.

It was a beautiful late summer day as we drove into Paso Robles, sun resting upon our shoulders, it was my (Seth) first time to the region, so I was very excited to get down to tasting what Paso had to offer. I called a few places earlier during the day to make sure the tasting rooms were still open and knew we were coming to taste their wares, everyone I spoke to was kind and inviting over the phone.

I remember from my earlier days as a Sommelier at Tra Vigne restaurant in St. Helena, an interesting wine called Linne Calodo. I had never tasted the juice but I had heard great things about it and was very interested in giving it a try.

When I called the winery I spoke to a person on the phone that, at the time, sounded like a relaxed “whatever is clever” kind of guy and said to come as we please. We weren’t sure if we would make it there in time but it ended up being just down the road from where we were staying.

As we arrived to the tasting room just before closing, we were greeted by a lovely young lady with bright smile who was more than willing to pour through their lineup of Rhone and Zinfandel blends. Midway through the second or third wine a scruffy gentleman who apparently spent many an hour in the cellar appeared through a side door and started talking to us casually as if he knew us. I thought this to be quiet a refreshing change from the formalities of many Napa tasting rooms.

After several minutes of wine talk he introduced himself, to my surprise, as Matt Trevisan, (the person I spoke to on the phone) owner and Winemaker of the Winery. He later explained that it was customary to grow out his beard during harvest, hence my earlier assumption of his cellar-dwelling appearance.

We got into a particular conversation about Calcareous soil-types which lead us out front looking at some recently deposited earth that actually contained chunks of whale vertebrae and large calcium deposits, this being what calcareous soils are made of. I was particularly impressed at this point, seeing the various elemental compositions of calcareous soil and hearing Matt’s intimate knowledge of vine and terroir connectivity.

I am still blown away by the humility and the complex simplicity if you will, of this particular individual. When asked what he did to create such high-scoring wines his response was simple, “I just want to make wine and share it with my family and friends”.And perhaps that is the passion and attitude it takes to create such amazingly complex and pretty wines.

Segueing into the cellar we were able to capture a flicker of thought and reflection about a few of the barrel samples we were trying. It was a little funny, every few minutes Matt realized he was on camera and appeared camera-shy. Had he known we came equipped with a hand-held Flip HD video camera, I dare say he would have been a little more reticent to expose so much of his operation, however, shortly thereafter he warmed up and allowed us to capture the very artistic, cerebral, and a talent at ping-pong, Matt Trevisan of Linne Calodo.